LinuxInsider Talkback

Fans of FOSS are already all too accustomed to the many barbs and insults Microsoft tends to sling at any free competitor, but one of the latest was so mystifying as to leave many Linux bloggers scratching their heads. Translated from its original Russian, the statement in question reads, "We must bear in mind that Linux is not a Russian OS and, moreover, is at the end of its life cycle." Now, those who have been paying attention know that Russia is in the midst of what might be called an on-again, off-again affair with free software.

Linux is many things to many different people. Foremost it is a sort of generic Unix that IT admins can use in lieu of more expensive brands such as AIX, HPUX, or Sun's Unix. It makes sense where the claimed benefits of the call brand are not needed or are over-priced. Linux is administered essentially identically to Unix, so no learning curve is necessary. Awareness of Linux is high among IT admins and servers using Linux are the 4th most popular in terms of money spent on annual procurement.

Embedded Linux, in routers, DVRs, or any other data appliance is just code that saves an apparatus vendor development time and money and/or saves purchase of some commercial OS, specifically Windows for embedding.

Linux is also being promoted by Google under their Android or "Droid" brand where Google has commercialized the application market on top of the raw kernel used.

Linux, as a software entity, has received a lot of recognition in these areas. Where Linux is still a lead baloon is on the desktop. There it is not at its end of life, it never really had a life to start with. It works, sure, but so would Unix itself or its freebie clones. Linux never addressed the needs of the desktop user and continues to miss the mark today. It is hard to see where tying Linux to weaker and weaker hardware platforms is going to help much. Windows is as functional as Linux on a function for function basis and that lesson was learned by most during the netbook wars. If ARM based devices become popular, there will be a Windows for that as well. For that matter, there are already many Windows based ARM devices in the world.

"Linux never addressed the needs of the desktop user" <> "Windows is as functional as Linux on a function for function basis"

Both statements cannot be true. I have seen GNU/Linux please users on thousands of desktops and the systems are much more responsive than that other OS. What needs remain to be addressed? Should GNU/Linux welcome new malware or require more re-re-reboots? I don't think those are needs of the end-users but of Wintel. Wintel wants PCs to slow down so the end-user will want a newer/faster machine and a new one will be bought. Growth of usage of GNU/Linux desktop is about 20% per annum. GNU/Linux on ARM will soon eclipse Wintel simply because Wintel does not give end-users what they want, small, cheap, and fast computers.

Sticking to the point never was your long suit, eh, Robert? Linux as a personal computer OS misses the mark, of course, and little can be done to correct such a faulty design. Linux is a clone of Unix which was meant for sharing a computer between numerous users and PCs are, after all, personal and not to be shared with anyone. PCs gained popularity when they cost thousands of dollars each. Now you think that they need to be shared via Linux when they now cost only a couple of hundred dollars?

Your other misconception is that putting Linux on ARM based junk processors will somehow block Microsoft from competing. But, as I said, there is nothing magic about Linux in regard to launching apps. It has no computing efficiency advantage when used for the same function as Windows, it simply lacks many of the Windows functions that aggregate into the "bloat" that you folk seem to see as an impediment to Windows in an ARM environment. But get a clue, if/when any such device becomes highly popular, there will be a Windows version to work with it and the Windows version will be the winner in the market.

Can't say that Linux did not give it a shot. But I think Linux never really lived on the PC. At least not for home users. In my own opinion Linux became too fragmented and had way too little support to ever convince many home users to even think about Linux. Only the Microsoft or Apple haters you know the ones who cannot stand big business ever overlooked Linux and its flaws and stayed with it. I think it does very well in a specific product which does not have to conform to the so many hardware combinations in a PC.

Linux is endless by itself,as you know Linux is for humanity,and humanity is not going to end in a year!
Unfortunately some Linux related sites who care about money and politics!! more than humanity,have limited the Linux progress.

You see you must be new here, allow me to elucidate: Ms Noyes has "run into" those of us you see quoted in her articles on various places around the net and she has chosen those that she knows have a particular "voice" and opinion on topics. I am the voice of the common man and the token Windows guy around here, while Ms Hudson is your classic IT server admin.

She then emails us questions concerning various topics of the week, which we all put our 2c worth in on, then later we will often come here to finish our "conversation" as it were and to parry back and forth with the various readers.

So you see it isn't some copypasta as much as it is a round table. Various experienced IT folks from varied view points brought together by Ms Noyes to give our views on the subject of the day, although unlike most of the various round table discussion s most of those involved at the table are actually here to answer questions from the audience as well as to banter and argue with each other, just as I'm doing here with you.

So I hope that clarifies things. If that isn't your cup of tea that's fine and dandy, but many of us here enjoy our little weekly get together where we can share our opinions without having to deal with groupthink or karma whoring like we do on sites like /.